Werder Bremen moved to within a point of the Europa League qualification places with a 1-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt at the Weserstadion.
Both sides were looking to be confident in the early stages, but chances were difficult to find until the hosts started to dominate possession midway through the first half.
It could have been a far more comfortable afternoon for Bremen had it not been for Kevin Trapp, who made a fine save to deny Theodor Gebre Selassie before the home side threatened again when Philipp Bargfrede fired just wide before the interval.
Trapp came to the rescue to deny Gebre Selassie once again early in the second half, after only managing to parry a low strike from Izet Hajrovic.
Long spells of pressure eventually produced a breakthrough for Bremen as they snatched the lead through Davie Selke, who converted from close range as Frankfurt failed to clear a corner.
Selke came close to scoring a second when his powerful strike rattled the crossbar, and Franco Di Santo could only shoot wide from the rebound.
However, the miss would not come back to haunt Bremen as Frankfurt struggled to build any pressure in an uneventful end to the Bundesliga match.
Callum Mulvihill
